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Students and some staff members of Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) have started a social media campaign to bring to light their displeasure and call on the Chancellor of the University – Otumfour Osei Tutu II, the Minister of Education, Youth and Sports – Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh and the KNUST University Council for the immediate removal of the Dean of Students, Professor William A. Gariba.

Some lecturers and staff of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology are actively seeking for the removal of Professor William A. Gariba from the post of Dean of Students because he does not merit his award of a Professorship. Some staff members accuse Professor Gariba of politically influencing the award of his Professorship.

KNUST students want Professor William A. Gariba removed from the post of Dean of Students

Students of the University have also not taken it lightly on their present Dean of Students.

Among several accusations which were displayed on students’ WhatsApp, Facebook and Twitter statuses and shared among numerous student groups, students accuse the office of the Dean of Students for enormously inflating prices of projects undertaken in the University. In a copy of a letter signed by the AG. Deputy Registrar (General) of the University; Y. Owusu-Asamoah, which was widely shared on social media, students accused Professor Gariba for his involvement in the inflation of prices and installation charges of 40 dustbins. The letter which was served to students of University Hall and Unity Hall directed the students to pay a whopping GHC 13,480 for the cost and installation of 40 dustbins.

Numerous accusations also shared within student social media groups and platforms also accused Professor Gariba for heavily meddling in Student Representative Council (SRC) elections. Some students accused Professor Gariba for actively supporting the now SRC President; David Dannah towards the build-up to the SRC elections. David Dannah who upon winning the elections has deferred his program of study and is not constitutional right to be regarded as a student let alone an SRC President is believed by the majority of students to have the full support of Professor Garibah.

Professor Gariba is been accused of openly telling students to vote for David Dannah as he is the only person among the aspirants he could work with. The students also in a social media post accused their SRC President David Dannah of supporting the wrongful debiting of Hall accounts by the office of the Dean of Student without any prior notice or authorization.

The accusations against the SRC President David Dannah and the Dean of Students Professor Gariba is a long list as students are asking for documentation and the cost involved in all projects under their term of office. Students are questioning the installation of a Ghc 30,000 security check post in each hall of residence. It is believed by most students that a partnership with UniBank covered the cost of installing the security check posts. The majority of students who displayed and shared ‘GARIBA MUST GO’ as statuses on social media are further requesting for the documentation and cost involved in acquiring the new shuttles which the SRC President David Dannah and Professor Garibah have made students aware that they will be for free transportation.

It seems Professor Gariba is nowhere in the good books of KNUST students as students from his own department – the Department of Biological Science are accusing him of openly bragging about how he single handedly planned and almost stopped the then NPP Presidential Aspirant Nana Akufo-Addo from entering KNUST campus during the build up to the 2016 Ghana Presidential elections if not for some student members of Tertiary Students Confederacy (TESCON) NPP.

In the University and Unity Hall, the accusations were baffling. Students shared stories of how Professor Gariba has personally threaten to victimize, suspend and even withdraw them should they be found connected to any accusation to challenge him. Others mentioned how their colleagues in the Department of Biological Science forewarned them about how wearing a KATANGA or CONTI paraphernalia will get them in trouble on some nights because Professor Gariba had earlier threatened that he will be storming campus for some arrests and to the utmost surprised of many, some students shared how Professor Gariba led the campus security team to arrest them whiles going about their activities on campus without any reason.

One former aspirant for Republic Hall presidency, in a letter to the Vice Chancellor, Professor Obiri-Danso described how Professor Gariba openly denied him from entering Africa Hall for their hall executives vetting and later had him wrongfully arrested and detained for a reason he has been officially told yet. Rumours has it that it was because Richard Mawuli Amegaste wasn’t in support of the Professor Gariba’s candidate for the Africa Hall presidency.

This post was edited by iGhanaian Editors for correctness, however, all views expressed herein remain that of the author, Raymond Gould and solely his. You can contact the author via raymondgouldd@gmail.com